Nexus 10 to get quad-core processor in upcoming refresh, report says

Google is reportedly prepping its next-generation Nexus 10 tablet, with a spec bump focusing on the device’s processor, which some complained wasn’t powerful enough to drive the energy-eating high-resolution screen.

According to semiconductor-industry website Bright Side of News, Google was handing around a version of its refreshed 10-inch Android tablet at CES earlier this month, albeit behind closed doors. The new model was showing “a significant increase in digital horsepower,” BSN reported.

The updated device – said to feature a quad-core processor together with a new 8-core Mali-T678 GPU – will be able to better handle the Nexus 10’s high-definition 2560 x 1600 resolution display. The device’s 300ppi pixel density beats even that of Apple’s much lauded Retina display (264ppi). When the Nexus 10 launched in October last year, Google heralded its new device as being “the highest resolution tablet on the planet.”

Other updates to the tablet, if indeed there are any, weren’t mentioned in BSN’s report, although it did state that its system memory will remain the same at 2GB.

The Mountain View company’s launch of the $400 Nexus 10 followed on the heels of its little brother, the Nexus 7, which hit stores in the summer. Both have been well received by consumers and reviewers alike. After giving the larger offering the once over soon after launch, DT’s mobile expert Jeffrey Van Camp liked it so much he described it as “the best 10.1-inch Android tablet we’ve ever used.” An updated version sporting a much more powerful processor could well have Jeffrey cartwheeling around the office in a display of unbridled joy.

There’s no official word from Google about a Nexus 10 refresh, though if there is one in the works, we might well see it unveiled at its annual I/O developer event scheduled to take place in San Francisco from May 15 through 17.